Frieda got involved in US political activism in 2008, travelling to Pennsylvania with the Bus for Obama, and then in 2010 campaigning for the Democrats in Westchester. Previously, she lived in London, where she was a member of the Fabian Society, a historic center-left think-tank.
Aside from that, Frieda makes a living as a freelance journalist, writing for publications like the New York Times, Salon, and Prospect magazine UK. She looks forward to a time when words like “socialist” can be used without fear in polite conversation.

There are lots of Youtube videos of the the UC Davis pepper-spraying but this one will give a gist of the event. A moustachioed cop sprays the orange substance on crouching students as though he were watering his lawn. Another shoots at the kids from behind, and then more step forward, to finish off the job. Towards the end of the short recording, a cop stares right at the camera, the reflected light on this visor making his face invisible. … Read More…

If you have been following the global progress of the Occupy movement you will know that several hundred tents have popped up in London’s financial district in a complaint against corporate greed, inequality and a lack of affordable housing. Like the New York encampment, Occupy the London Stock Exchange is well equipped, with generous sources of funding. And like the New York occupation (until this week, at least) it is not quite where it says it is: the Occupants’ first-choice location … Read More…

DON’T BE SURPRISED IF OBAMA WINS IN 2012… BLAME OUR GOP LEADERS…. THEY ARE SPINELESS, WIMPS !!! [sic] This statement, all in capitals, features in a blog on Smart Girl Politics, an online forum for conservative women that sprang up in the midst of Palin frenzy of 2008. The Mamma Grizzlies have been such a visible part of the political narrative and had, to liberals, seemed so strident and powerful, that I was captivated by them, slightly against my will. … Read More…

[ photo: Jaimelondonboy ] Ireland may have received a lot of attention last week (it was St. Patrick’s Day, in case you didn’t notice). But a reminder of the country’s true unimportance recently appeared in the New York Times: the paper of record referred to the new prime minister as Edna Kenny, and described the person as ‘she.’ The existence of a glamorous lady novelist called Edna, who recently had a book out may have been misleading – and Enda … Read More…